SEMANTIC SPECIALIZATION IN IGBO RECIPROCAL VERBAL MARKERS: A STRONGEST MEANING HYPOTHESIS ACCOUNT OF -RỊ́TÁ AND -GWÁRÁ

Abstract

This study investigates the semantic contrast between two Igbo verbal reciprocal suffixes, -rị́tá and -gwárá, a distinction first noted but not systematically explored by Okeke (2015: 89-95) with the aim to establish the semantic functions of the two verbal reciprocal suffixes. It adopts two theoretical frameworks: Gaby and Faller's (2003) six-way typology of reciprocal events (Strong, Adjacent, Pairwise, Melee, Chained, and Asymmetric) as a classificatory grid, and the Strongest Meaning Hypothesis (Dalrymple, Kanazawa, Kim, Mchombo, and Peters 1998) as an explanatory procedure. The study tests the two suffixes against nnative-speakers judgments drawn from Standard Igbo. The results show that - rị́tá is a semantically neutral marker whose interpretation is entirely predicate-driven, ranging freely across all six event types, while - gwárá is restricted to event structures compatible with an inherently ordered, initiator-respondent schema. Crucially, -gwárá is shown to resist Melee reciprocity even where the predicate involved is semantically compatible with retaliation, indicating that the suffix constrains event structure directly rather than merely restricting predicate choice. The study situates this finding within Filip and Carlson's (2001) account of marker-specific modulation of the Strongest Meaning Hypothesis in Czech, arguing that Igbo -gwárá constrains reciprocal shape (temporal and causal ordering) where Czech aspectual prefixes constrain reciprocal strength, thereby extending the cross-linguistic reach of the Strongest Meaning Hypothesis to a previously undocumented type of marker-specific effect